The first reading group of this session will be on Monday. The text has been chosen by Jon Price who is a new PhD researcher joining the community at Grays. Here is his introduction to the text:

Matarasso argues that the global financial crisis can be read as marking the end of the Age of Reason in the west. This has implications for established management and leadership models, including those commonly applied to the arts and cultural policy. The “scientific” model of leadership, in which visionary experts work to fixed models with high levels of control over the results, cannot cope with real life instability and uncertainty. So are there more creative methods and processes, particularly within the arts, that we could now turn to instead?

I’m asking the group to look at this for three reasons. Firstly, it is an interesting and timely read which clearly articulates some of the big questions facing the arts and society at this particular moment in time. Secondly, it’s a pretty good summary of the starting point for my own research – so it should provide a useful introduction to my perspective and the kind of questions I’ll be exploring. Finally, there are local connections, as the author is about to start working in Aberdeenshire on a cultural mapping project, while the paper draws heavily on Anne Douglas and Chris Fremantle’s previous Artist as Leader work.